What happens when they run out of letters? Just this morning
I saw an article addressing the need to start marketing to “Generation Z”, which
consists of everyone under the age of 18 or 19. Who is in charge of setting up
these age ranges anyway? I do agree that we as the horticultural and
agricultural industries should always be mindful of the youth, so that we have
both future customers and future industry leaders. I also agree that we should be getting a jump
on reaching this demographic because we did a terrible job of reaching this age
group when “Generation Y” was in their shoes. However, I also think we need to
see what is directly in front of us. We still don’t have a clue how to reach
Generation Y, the group of consumers who are rapidly gaining power within the
economy. In order to even have a business to cater to the “Next, Next
Generation”, we have to figure out what to do NOW.
As I mentioned in the last post, one of the reasons that we
truly haven’t been successful in marketing to the Millennial Generation is that
we spend a lot of our time trying to oversimplify them. We try to put the most
diverse and dynamic subsets of people into one large bundle. Don’t be a bundler
(isn’t that what the commercials say?).
I want to get you to step back and really start to see how
different this generation really is, and how you are going to have to become
diverse in your efforts and products to achieve success. I’m going to show you
how, in America, this whole generation can be separated into three drastically
different subgroups; however, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Generation Y
could be and should be thought of in a thousand subsets not just three. This is
merely an effort in division to get your gears going.
Let’s start off with Amber. She represents the first
grouping of Generation Y in our story. Amber just celebrated her 30th
birthday by purchasing a new home with her husband Mark. They have a one year
old daughter with another baby on the way. Amber and Mark both have steady jobs
with good income. They really want to settle themselves into the stereotypical
suburban setting. Mark is planning on building a garden in the backyard to
raise tomatoes and hot peppers. Amber remembers her grandmother’s hydrangeas
and decides that she needs to have beautiful flowers around their house. They
don’t know a thing about plants, but they have the space, money, and time to experiment.
Amber is married, and financially stable. She also represents
just about 1out of 3 millennials by owning a house as well. She doesn’t see
plants as a gamble because she has the disposable income. She has space for
them as well as the money to afford them, and her fond memories inspire her to
buy.
Now let’s take a look at Reid. Reid is 28, has a pretty good
job, and lives in an apartment with his roommate. Though Reid knows that he
wants to settle down someday, he enjoys his freedom. He likes to travel and
spends a lot of his free time on the go. From surfing, to hiking, to exploring
city nightlife, Reid uses his time and money to adventure. He respects the
environment, and wants the most for his money with every dollar he spends.
The plants that we are used to selling really don’t fit
Reid’s lifestyle. He needs something that can fit his busy time schedule. He’s
not home all the time which makes watering a challenge. Also, a Reid spends a
lot of time researching his purchases and wants to buy from a company that he
can stand behind. He goes out of his way to support good causes. However he
also wants plants that have a function. Skip the boring with this guy, it just
won’t work.
Last, let’s talk about Max. Max is 25. Times have been tough
on Max. The economy dropped when he was in school, and he came into the job
market at a really down time. Max just moved back in with his parents, and is
paying rent and looking for better job. Max knows this isn’t the end for him,
he just knows that it’s going to take time to get back on his feet. Until he
saves up the money for his own place, he’s perfectly ok with the homemade
meatloaf.
Max has almost no disposable income. Sadly this is an
altogether too common feeling for many twenty-somethings in America. They have
had to put big chunks of their lives on hold while they work up the ladders. We
have nothing to sell to guys like Max. However we have to make sure that we
still catch his interest, because some day Max is going to start the next
Microsoft, and we need to be there to cash in with him. How do we keep Max’s
interest while not actively trying to sell him something?
These three examples are just a few of thousands that could
be used to describe Generation Y. We have to target our markets carefully or
become so diverse as to reach them all. Grouping millions of people with
different life situations together gets us nowhere. It’s about really figuring
out who you want your customer to be, making sure they actually exist and then
doing what you need to do to bring them in the door.
You can ALWAYS find me here:
and
annnnd
